‘Easter Island, Chile: see main attractions – 12/27/2023 – Tourism

If Disney’s princess Moana were real and lived on Easter Island, she would spend most of her time hiding in a cave to be purified while her suitors would fight over her — which would have zero protagonism.

This is a summary of “Rapa Nui – An Adventure in Paradise”, a 1994 film that shows how the island’s patriarchal society was organized, before the arrival of Europeans.

The territory was discovered around the 800s by the Polynesians, who divided into small groups to explore the ocean in canoes and jumped from island to island.

These people lived isolated on Rapa Nui — as they named the island — for around a thousand years until the arrival of Europeans, on an Easter Sunday in 1722. Hence the new name.

The period of isolation was mainly due to the location. Easter Island is one of the most remote inhabited regions in the world. It is 3,500 km off the coast of Chile, the country to which it belongs. Despite this, the island is part of Oceania.

To get there, from São Paulo, it is necessary to take a stopover trip. The first part, to Santiago, lasts four hours. The second, from the Chilean capital to the village of Hangaroa, takes five hours. The route is made once a day only by Latam. The outbound flight leaves at 9:35 am and the return flight at 3 pm.

Arrival is somewhat chaotic. The airport is small. The amount of luggage, with boxes and coolers full of supplies from the continent, that the natives bring is impressive. One of the island’s problems is supply, due to the distance.

The reception, however, is warm. Tourists receive a smiling “iorana” (the “hello” in the Rapanui language) accompanied by a flower necklace to welcome them.

The population of around 8,000 inhabitants, in addition to their native language, speaks Spanish, English and even some French, but does not understand a word of Portuguese. There, Brazilians are rare. One of the reasons is the high cost of the trip. The cheapest ticket costs around R$4,500.

The descendants of pioneering Polynesians are proud of their heroic past. The Rapanui are a mystical people linked to the sea, the stars, volcanoes and moai.

The main attraction, the humanoid statues built from large blocks of stone, date back to the patriarchal tradition of that civilization. Moai pay homage to ancestral male figures. There are about a thousand spread across the island, carved in a quarry on the Rano Raraku volcano. Historians believe they were built between 1400 and 1650.

Most of the tourist destinations are related to moai and, to visit all the parks, you need to pay US$80 (about R$400) for up to ten days. In each of the parks, tourists will have to present the same ticket along with their passport.

Among the attractions is one of the arrival points for Polynesian navigators. Anakena beach, with pink sand and turquoise sea, is home to eight statues and tells an important part of the history of Rapa Nui’s first civilization.

The Rano Raraku volcano is one of the most emblematic places on the island. There are 397 moai at different stages of construction. During the tour, in addition to unraveling the mystery of how they were carved, it is possible to learn about the different theories of transport of these enormous rocks around the island.

In the film “Rapa Nui” it is possible to see one of these theories. After removing the moai from the motherstone – the material from which they are made -, the men took care of cutting down trees to make lever ropes. Transport required a large number of workers and enormous strength.

To the east of Rapa Nui, on the Tongariki platform, it is possible to experience an unmissable sunrise. The place is home to 15 moai and attracts tourists every day willing to gather together to wait for dawn behind the gigantic statues.

Brasília is two hours ahead of Easter Island. The feeling of delay is even greater because sunrise is late, around 7:40 am, and sunset is at 8:30 pm.

The Rapanui night also holds charms. It is possible to observe the stars and understand their importance so that the ancestors could sail to this remote island. It’s a unique experience under one of the clearest skies in the world.

It is also at night that traditional shows take place. One of the most famous is that of the Kari Kari group. The presentation with the help of rustic instruments portrays legends of the Rapanui people. Once again men are the protagonists. At various times, tourists are invited to go on stage and dance.

In most restaurants, you can find dishes with fish and seafood, especially raw options. Prices are a little steep, starting at R$100. On the menu at the Kanahau restaurant, one of the possibilities is the trilogy sur la mer, with three types of ceviches.

In the three restaurants at the island’s five-star hotel, Nayara Hangaroa, the specialties are ra rape, a smaller type of lobster, stone-cooked tuna ceviche, salads and other dishes that incorporate local sweet potatoes, banana -earth and mango.

Easter Island impresses with its natural attributes, preserved traditions, but, in particular, its feeling of isolation. The impression of being in a remote place is present all the time, whether due to the lack of internet, unmaintained cars on the streets, free animals or the way time passes by.

_{The journalist traveled at the invitation of the Nayara Hangaroa hotel.}